March 25 Report Card: Jobless numbers, academic scandal

The Report Card issues grades A through F, and incompletes where necessary, to a variety of news items in this space.

Got an idea that makes the grade? Send it to JBuchanan@CITIZEN-TIMES.com

Reader grades

A to all the volunteers at the Mountain Area Reading Service, MARRS, which broadcasts specifically to sight impaired people. When I first moved to Asheville, I knew nothing about this area's people, politics, recreational, educational and entertainment opportunities for all ages, nor of organizations to join, etc. Fortunately, that all changed when I met the late Bob Brummond at the Low Vision support group, of which he was one of the original organizers. He informed me about the wonderful Radio Reading Service For the Blind, now known as "MARRS," which he founded. Since 1988, this service changed my life entirely. I listen faithfully each day to hear all the local and national news plus history, health, best seller books and much more. This wealth of information has created an inclusive environment for the blind community enabling us to stay connected and involved. Because of enlightenment by MARRS, I became, involved in Descriptive Audio For the Sight Impaired. If you know a sight impaired person who does not yet know about the radio reading service, please tell them about "MARRS."

Jan Mason Stanko, Asheville

Stanko is President of DASI, Descriptive Audio For the Sight Impaired.

A to the UNCA Environmental Chemistry students, for tackling the challenging subject of the proposed construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. And I hope you will not mind a recap here of your analysis. You address key points of the arguments for and against construction: Economic impact: construction provides only 35-50 permanent jobs - therefore, not a clear benefit, you conclude. National security: Canadian oil is preferable to OPEC oil, you conclude. However, Canada plans to sell their oil on the world market, and the US would be buying in competition with other nations ... no special deals offered - I say, therefore, not a clear benefit. Environmental impact: Well, your analysis claims the tar-sands oil of Alberta will be extracted no matter what, pipeline or no pipeline, so don't even consider the environmental effects. Whoa. Even the latest State Department Environmental Impact Statement now acknowledges that constraints on new pipeline capacity could have "a substantial impact on oil sands production levels." Back to square one, then, on weighing the effects of pipeline construction on the air, the water, the creatures, and the health and very existence of the First Nations people of the Athabasca delta. Are you up for it?

Cathy T. Scott, Asheville

Staff grades

F to Duke's pumping of contaminated coal ash water into the Cape Fear River. There are so many moving parts to the Duke coal ash saga it's hard to keep up, but this episode is especially worth noting. The illegal pumping was taking place for months, and notably at the same time attention was focused on the Dan River spill. It's the eighth environmental violation in under a month for Duke.

F to the continuing academic scandal at the University of North Carolina. The latest wrinkle, courtesy the nonprofit Government Accountability Project, a whistleblower protection and advocacy organization, is that UNC may have violated state law when it leveled criticism at a reading specialist who said a number of football and basketball players at UNC could not read at a third-grade level. The Associated Press reports "GAP President Louis Clark urged UNC-CH to investigate whether school officials have harassed or intimidated Mary Willingham, who worked with athletes and researched their reading skills. He demanded that the school release the names of a third-party independent board that school officials have said is investigating Willingham's analysis of athletes' literacy.''

B to the latest local jobless numbers, which show area residents are working in the largest numbers seen since 2008, as the area economy has slowly reclaimed the 10,000 local jobs lost in the Great Recession. Buncombe's labor force grew to 127,372 workers in January from 126,013 in December. The number of unemployed workers actively looking for jobs increased from 6,068 to 6,638, according to data released Friday through the N.C. Commerce Department. That rise caused the county's unemployment rate to move up to 5.2 percent for the month, compared to 4.8 percent in December. Statewide, unemployment was estimated at 6.7 percent in January.

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March 25 Report Card: Jobless numbers, academic scandal

The Report Card issues grades A through F, and incompletes where necessary, to a variety of news items in this space.